As a futurist how should we view this Christmastime ?
For those of us who are Christians this is always a time of intense mystery - God becoming flesh- Spirit becoming mortal like us - these are not easy concepts to grasp but are fundamental to our faith, without them being real to each one of us we are as others have said "the most to be pitied". Having said this though, for many of us who realise what our true mission in this world is, this is the time of year to ensure that we look over our shoulders and beyond our doors to check on how others are coping and to lend a helping hand in what ever way we can- foodbank parcels, gifts for prisoners' children and families, a meal for a family stricken by an accident, building a house for a family who wnat to escape the poverty trap- just some of the ways people in our local church are helping others, which is what Jesus came to encourage us to do. This kind of action shows we have hope for the future....
For those (the vast majority) who see Christmas as yet another holiday or a time for getting together with family and friends for a feast of consumption, well enjoy whilst the good times roll- next year could be very different ! We all need to approach 2009 with a sense of reality as to what is really going on in the world- it is not just more of the same, 2008 has shown us that many of the core trading and financial fundamentals of our globalised world have not only been shaken to the core- they have in fact moved off their base. Trust and honesty - the core basis for good faith bargaining and market transactions has in fact not just been dented, it has disappeared, perhaps forever ? How is it ever possible for a finance broker to lose $US50 bn of funds and no-one be aware of this ?
Many people's futures will now be highly uncertain due to these massive global financial losses, people who once thought they had enough funds to retire on now find they are all gone, or what is left is now earning pitiful levels of interest. Car workers worldwide will be wondering what their future is especially in countries that can ill afford to prop them up. People who were conned into buying a home they could not afford are perhaps now living in a trailer park or in a homeless shelter.
So for many this may be the last good Christmas they will know- unless they too discover for the first time who is the real reason for this season of CHRISTmas...his future is truly dependable.
